A Friendly Chat
by isnotthatstrange
Summary: Ezekiel corners Jake to talk to him about Cassandra. Set after "and the Fables of Doom"


Jake was leaning over the kitchen counter, his undershirt sticking to his body and a nearly empty water bottle in his hand. He and Baird had headed to the makeshift gym that the Guardian had set up in the Annex to hit the punching bag and had ended up sparring. To say he was worn was an understatement. The day had been long, _and weird as hell_, and the only thing on Jake's mind was a hot shower.

He drained the rest of the water and turned to toss it into the trash, only to flinch in surprise at the sight of Ezekiel sitting atop the kitchen island. The thief could be sneaky when he wanted to be.

"Make some noise next time," Jake huffed.

"Or what?" Ezekiel cheekily replied. "You'll axe me?"

"Maybe."

Jake chucked the empty water bottle towards the garbage bin. It bounced off the edge and onto the floor. Ignoring Ezekiel's snort of laughter, he retrieved it and properly placed it into the receptacle.

"I guess ball isn't life for you, huh?"

Jake narrowed his eyes. "Did you come here for something?"

"Just wanted to spark a friendly conversation."

Ezekiel could tell by the look on Jake's face that he didn't buy that at all.

"Alright," Ezekiel sighed. "Look, I usually try to stay out of other people's problems -"

"Good," Jake said and walked towards the doorway.

Ezekiel leapt off of the island and squeezed his way between Jake and the exit. Jake sighed heavily and crossed his arms over his chest.

"Listen, you need to stop treating Cassandra this way."

"I'm not talking to you about Cassandra."

"Just listen," Ezekiel said, straightening his posture to stand his ground. "You need to start treating her better. Whether you like it or not, she is a member of this team, just like you and me and Baird and Flynn."

Jake shrugged and replied in his unsettlingly nonchalant tone, "I don't mind her being a part of the team."

"Then stop berating her for one mistake that she made!"

"One mistake? _One mistake?_ She's the reason that the Library is lost, not to mention she nearly let Flynn die!"

"You think she doesn't know that? Also, Flynn is the one with the most right to be upset with her and you know what he did? He forgave her."

"I can't just do that. I've learned that trust is -"

Ezekiel rolled his eyes. "Yeah, yeah, _cryptic allusion to something in your past that has left you unable to trust people_, I get it."

Jake grunted and pushed his way past the human barrier in the doorway. He started down the hall, ignoring Ezekiel's footsteps behind him.

"There was something familiar about Jamie."

That stopped him.

"What?" Jake asked in a confused tone. "The kid? What are you talking about?"

"There was something familiar about her and I realized what it was. She was sick and scared and thought that she was going to die. Remind you of anyone?"

Ezekiel turned to the window that looked into the main room of the Annex. Cassandra was seated at the large work table. A book was open to one side of her, a spiral-bound notebook on the other, and her tablet was on a stand in front of her. She was fully immersed in whatever she was working on, not even taking note of the argument going on between her teammates.

"So? Jamie didn't sell anyone out because of her sickness."

Ezekiel nodded. "Yeah, but she did pick locks for red Jell-O, which is pretty conniving for a seven year old."

"Are you seriously comparing Jell-O to almost getting us killed?" Jake asked incredulously.

"Just giving you something to think about," Ezekiel said with a shrug and turned on heel.

Jake went into the main room, making a beeline for where he had left his jacket and car keys. He caught Cassandra's eyes flick up at him, then immediately refocus on whatever it was she was doing. Her posture seemed more rigid now than it had been when he had seen her through the window. _Was that because of _him_? _Jake sighed. Yes, Cassandra had hurt him, but it wasn't his intention to hurt her back. He didn't want her to harden up when he was around, like she was afraid of him.

He twirled the keys around his finger, watching her work for a moment longer.

"Hey, Prince Charming, it's getting late. You want a ride home?"

Her guard slipped down ever so slightly as she accepted the offer, and so did his.


End file.
